Wine Recommendations for Easter Sunday

Wondering what to serve with your Easter feast? Gemma, wine buyer at our Cambridge location, is recommending a light, crisp white for appetizers and a fuller-bodied, flavorful red to pair with a traditional lamb dish. Both are from sustainable producers that we know and trust – below are descriptions of the two selected wines.

I Clivi ’10 Friulano San Pietro

Exclusive to Formaggio Kitchen! This white comes from organically farmed, hand-harvested (wine buyer Gemma’s hands among them!) Tocai grapes, that are grown in Friuli’s hilly village of Corno di Rosazzo, about two hours northeast of Venice. Mario and Ferdinando Zanusso have vines that average sixty years age which are low-yielding and concentrated in flavor. The fruit tends to be quite stone fruit scented, slightly herbaceous, spicy, balanced – according to the Zanussos, a relative of Sauvignon Blanc. They work with stainless steel in their cellar, allowing the fruit and terroir to communicate articulately. Because this wine is lower in alcohol, it makes for the perfect aperitif as it is dry, fragrant, and expressive.

Fattoria La Striscia ’09 Chianti Colli Aretini

This rustic Chianti is from a small, family-run farm that is in the hills just outside of Pisa. It is based mostly on Sangiovese grapes with small inputs of Cannaiolo and Merlot. This vintage was sunny and dry, allowing for good ripeness and round tannins, giving it good drinkability while maintaining decent structure and backbone. Its cherry-scented fruit, herbal notes and earthy/leathery finish will work with more flavorful dishes such as lamb. This farm is currently in organic conversion.